Contents [hide]

Colon History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Suggested Reading Citations

Colon History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Spain
Ireland

The history of the Colon name began with the ancient Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. The name is derived from the personal name Nicholas. A common diminutive of the name Nicholas was Colin. 1

Saint Collen was a 7th-century monk who gave his name to Llangollen, Denbighshire which translates from the Welsh as "church of the hazel-wood."

Early Origins of the Colon family

The surname Colon was first found in various counties throughout old Britain. By example, the Hundreorum Rolls of 1273 list William de Colince or Colunce as holding lands at Chadlington, Oxford, and Hugh de Culunce had custody of Pont Orson temp. King John, c. 1200. Ernis de Coulonces married a daughter of William de Warrenne, Earl of Surrey, temp. Henry I. and Hugh de Colonches in 1165, held a barony of four fees. Adam de Coulnce paid a fine to the King in Oxfordshire 1203, and Hugh de Coulnce confirmed lands to Mottisfont Priory 2

We must look to Somerset to view an early entry for an early phonetic match to the more popular spellings of today. For it is there that John Colyngs was listed as holding lands, 1 Edward III (during the first year of the reign of King Edward III.) 3

Down in Cornwall, the Halset manor in Lesnewth, "belonged to the family of Colyn but in the reign of James I. it was the property of Thomas Southcott, Esq. and Mr. Humphrey Brown." 4

Again in Cornwall, "the manor of Luxulian was in the family of Collins in the reign of Elizabeth, after which it became the property of the Kendalls." 4

Early History of the Colon family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Colon research. Another 105 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1172, 1500, 1576, 1618, 1623, 1624, 1625, 1651, 1653, 1660, 1667, 1683, 1690, 1697, 1705, 1711 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Colon History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Colon Spelling Variations

Sound was what guided spelling in the essentially pre-literate Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Also, before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Therefore, spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Colon family name include Collins, Collin, Collings, Colling, Collis, Caullins, Caulling, Caullings, Caullis, Colins, Colings, Coliss and many more.

Early Notables of the Colon family

Distinguished members of the family include Samuel Collins (1576-1651), an English clergyman and academic, Regius Professor of Divinity at Cambridge and Provost of King's College, Cambridge; and his son, John Collins (1624-1711), an English academic and politician; Abraham Cowley (1618-1667), an English poet born in the City of London; John Collinges (1623-1690), an English Presbyterian theologian, participant in the Savoy Conference, ejected minister, and prolific writer; John Collins (1625-1683), an...
Another 70 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Colon Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Colon Ranking

In the United States, the name Colon is the 423^rd most popular surname with an estimated 67,149 people with that name. 5

Migration of the Colon family to Ireland

Some of the Colon family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 72 words (5 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Colon migration to the United States +

For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, the Canadas, the America colonies, and many of smaller tropical colonies in the hope of finding better lives abroad. Although the passage on the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving, those families that survived the trip often went on to make valuable contributions to those new societies to which they arrived. Early immigrants bearing the Colon surname or a spelling variation of the name include :

Colon Settlers in United States in the 16th Century

Nicasio Colon, who arrived in Nombre de Dios, Panama in 1535

Colon Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

William Colon, who arrived in Virginia in 1665 6
Michael Colon, who landed in Maryland in 1682 6

Colon Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Patrick Colon, aged 22, who landed in America in 1822 6
Nicasio Colon, who arrived in Nombre de Dios, Panama in 1835 6
Martin Colon who arrived in New Orleans in 1851
Martin Colon, aged 34, who arrived in New Orleans, La in 1851 6
Juan P Colon, who arrived in Puerto Rico in 1860 6
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Colon migration to West Indies +

The British first settled the British West Indies around 1604. They made many attempts but failed in some to establish settlements on the Islands including Saint Lucia and Grenada. By 1627 they had managed to establish settlements on St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Barbados, but by 1641 the Spanish had moved in and destroyed some of these including those at Providence Island. The British continued to expand the settlements including setting the First Federation in the British West Indies by 1674; some of the islands include Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Island, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica and Belize then known as British Honduras. By the 1960's many of the islands became independent after the West Indies Federation which existed from 1958 to 1962 failed due to internal political conflicts. After this a number of Eastern Caribbean islands formed a free association. 7

Colon Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Nicholas Colon, aged 19, who arrived in Barbados in 1635 6

Contemporary Notables of the name Colon (post 1700) +

Rafael Hernández Colón (b. 1936), American politician, Member of Puerto Rico senate, 1969-72; Governor of Puerto Rico, 1973-77, 1985-93 8
Willie Colon (b. 1983), American football offensive guard for the New York Jets
Luis Alfredo Colón (b. 1916), American lawyer and politician, New York State senator
Ismael Amador Colón (b. 1894), American chemist
Carlos Edwin Colon Sr. (b. 1948), American professional wrestler from Puerto Rico
Luisette Cabañas Colon, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Puerto Rico, 2004, 2008; Puerto Rico Democratic Party vice-chair, 2008 9
José E. Colón, Puerto Rican politician, acting Governor of Puerto Rico in 1939
Míriam Colón (1936-2017), Puerto Rican actress
William Anthony Colon (b. 1950), Puerto Rican salsa music icon
Bartolo Colon (b. 1973), Major League Baseball starting pitcher from Dominican Republic

Citations +

Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
Dickinson, F.H., Kirby's Quest for Somerset of 16th of Edward the 3rd London: Harrison and Sons, Printers in Ordinary to Her Majesty, St, Martin's Lane, 1889. Print.
Hutchins, Fortescue, The History of Cornwall, from the Earliest Records and Traditions to the Present Time. London: William Penaluna, 1824. Print
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, May 19) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 11) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html